Spike-puller.



E| F. GOBEN.

` SPIKE FULLER.

APPLlcATloN men Juuzs. 191s.

Patented Apr. 17,1917" zyewor i o gwen wzaowg UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

EDWARD FISHER GOBEN, OF MUSKOGEE, (KLAI-IOMA.

SPIKE-FULLER.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Application led July 25, 1916. Serial No. 111,287.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD F. Groen, a citizen of the United States,residing at Muskogee, in the county of Muskogee and State of Oklahoma,have invented new and useful Improvements in Spike-Fullers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to spike pullers and consists of an improvementon or continuation of the construction and arrangement of the spikepuller embodied in my pending application Serial No. 73,692, filed Janunary 22, 1916, and allowed March 2S, l1916.

The primary object ci'. the improvement is to brace the movable jaw andprovide the same with a reversible bit so that when one end of the bitbecomes broken or dulled it may be reversed" to bring the opposite spikeengaging end into operative position relatively to a spike, a numberv ofthese bits being supplied with each puller so that the. practicalservice of the device as whole may be prolonged without requiringrepair. A further object of thepresent invention is to provide a movablejaw which in the main is constructed of a metal of a lower grade thanthe fixed jaw and to provide said movable jaw with a reversible bit ofhigh grade metal or a metal harder than the movable jaw and whereby themovable jaw in the main will not become in the least impaired and allthe wear imposed upon the reversible bit, which may be readily changedto bring opposite ends thereof into operative position relatively lto aspike to be pulled and to coact with the fixed jaw. y

With these and other objects-and advantages in view the inventionconsists inthe construction vand arrangement of the several parts whichwill be more fully hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a spike puller embodying the featuresof the invention and broken away in part.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the puller shown applied to a rail and inoperative position to draw aspike, the puller being illustrated in fulland dotted lines to show the Inannerof applying the same and also theoperation thereof.

Fig. through the rail shown by Fig. 2 and illustrating the improvedspike puller inapplied position andl in edge eleva-tion.

3 is a transverse vertical section and a portlon of the vtie as Fig. 4:is a letail perspective view of the reversible bit constituting one ofthe features of the improvement.

The numeral 5 designates the support ot the device wl ich alsoconstitutes the operating means 2nd Consists of a flat plate ofconsiderable strength and durability which is mainly of circular contourand provided at one extrem .ty with a tapered fulcruni extension 6having a lower convex edge 7 and at the opposi;e extremity the plate hasan approximately rectangular extension 8 terminating in a shoulder 9which extends full length thereof in a vertical direction. The upperedge o" the extension serves as a tapping means 1), the said edge beingstraight and reinforced or thickened in part by theV its teeth corstituting the primal fulcrum` for the comp lete device in view of thefact that the said edge is below the lower edge 7 of the extension, thesaid lower edge of the support or b( dy 5 being'indicated as a whole bythe numeral 12. In advance of the teeth or serrations 11 a spike headclearing recess 13 is formed in the extension 8, and on the outer sideof the support or body against the shoulder or stop brace'9 a fixed jaw14 is secured bf bolts 15 arranged as shown. On the same side of thesupport or body is a movable j :1w 16 which is continuous with or formsa jnart of anelongated handle or' rein 17, this movable jaw with itshandle or rein 17 is actuated to draw or pull a spike.

The main operating lever, including the jaw 16 and hand le or rein 17,has a prying action relatively to' a spike and eects a rocking movementof the support or body 5 when drawing or pulling a spike. The jaw 16 atthe' point where the end of the brace 19 engages the` fr lcrum 18 isformed with a recess 26 so as to permit the jaw to work under or 18, andengaging this fulprimal fulerum edge 12 have a clearance relatively tothe said brace, and the remaining part of this jaw is thickened orstrengthened by the addition of metal, especially at the lower end. Thefixed jaw 14 is removably mounted in connection with the extension 8 andhas a lower inwardly inclined toe 2l which projects below the lower edgeof the extension close to the recess 13, the toe being given a clearanceto engage one side of the spike head by means of a recess 22 formed inthe inner edge thereof adjacent to the toe.

One of the main features of the improvement is a reversible bit 23removably secured by bolts 24 to the edge of the aw 1G opposed to theedge of the jaw 14, said bit 23 being of materially harder metal thanthe jaw 16 and having toes 25 formed at opposite ends and whereby thebit may be released and re* versed in the event of breakage of the toethat may have been coperating with the toe 21 of the fixed jaw 14. Thelower extremity of the movable jaw 1G with a portion of the reversiblebit projects below the lower edge of the support or body 5 and the toesof the bit and fixed jaw are in reverse posit-ion as shown so as topositively engage opposite sides or portions of a spike below the headof the latter when the puller is set in position for drawing a spike.

4As hereinbefore specified, the support or body 5 is of plate form orflat and the inner side thereof, or the side that comes next to therail, is without projection or broken structure of any character so thatthe inner side of the support or body 5 may be brought into closemovable contact with the outer edge portion of the head or ball of arail to brace the puller as a whole during the operation of pulling ordrawing a spike. In applying the improved device to a spike it is firstarranged as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2 with the toes 21 and 25 ofthe fixed jaw and the bit respectively closely impinglng against theopposite sides of the spike immediately under the head of the latter,and when in this position the lower teeth 1l will bear upon the outerportion of the rail flange and: the device will be pushed inwardly farenough relatively to the rail to cause the inner smooth or unbroken sideof the support or body 5 to snugly engage the outer edge of the head orball of the rail. The operator then pulls the device toward him by meansof the handle or rein 17 and this te'nsion on the handle or rein causesa ti ht bite of the toes 21 and 25 on the head ofg the spike and at thesame time the support or body 5 turns or rocks in the direction of the"ull, the teeth or serrations l1 at the lower edge of the support orbody 5 preventing the puller from slipping. The lower rst engaging the astrong leverage to start the same,

flange of the rail will cause to be exerted on the spike Icompletewithdrawal thereof by continuing the movement of the support or body 5on the fulcrum extension 6. During this movement of the support or body5 a material bracing action will ensue by reason of the en gagement ofthe inner side of the support lor body 5 with the outer edge of the heador ball of the rail, and it will be seen that by .this bracingengagement of the support or body with the rail head or ball the deviceis held in place and is materially strengthened, especially when thepull on the device is excrted in a slight inward lateral direction. Whenthe spike head is somewhat embedded ,in the tie the toes 2l and 25 maybe driven thereunder by tapping on the upper edge of the extension 8with a hammer or other iinplement so as to effectively seat the saidtoes relatively to the spike head or cause the toes to be depressed intothe tie. By means of the operation of the puller parallel with the ,railand the general construction of the device as hereinbefore described,spikes can be extracted close up between frogs and on ,bridges where theuse of ordinary spike pull- 1ers is impracticable. In view of thebracing of the fixed jaw 14 the said jaw will be greatly strengthened inits operation, and, moreover, by the use of the reversible bit theservice of the device may be prolonged, it being proposed to providewith each spike puller a number of these bits so that a bit that mayhave become completely broken or unfit for further use may be readilyreplaced without material delay.

The foregoing construction presents many advantages, especially fromoperative and commercial standpoints. In addition 'to the ready removaland reversal of the bit 23, the jaw 14, which is also a bit, may bereadily removed and re laced by a similar device in the event ofbreakage, or When the toe 21 thereof becomes dulled the said jaw or bit14 may be preserved in operative condition by sharpening the toe. Theshoulder 9 against which the jaw or bit 14 is braced operates tomaterially relieve the bolts 15 of strain and tendency to breakage. Itis also proposed to supply a number of bits similar to the bits by thismeans the bit 14 may be readily replaced without impairing theremaining' structure of the puller or requiring the same to be 'sentback to the factory or shop for repair, and in like manner the bit 23after it has been reversed and considerably worn by usage at both ends,or in case both toes 25 become dulled, may be replaced by an' other bitwith sharp toes without waiting vio 15. vented from moving i durable aswell as a conveniently operable i.

i 'i extending shoulder at i to sharpen the dulled ytoes of the bit 23that i has been in use. kThe bits-14 and 23 will be preferably formed ofa higher grade metal `than thev remaining parts of the puller and 'thecost of manufacture of the entire device may thus be materially reducedwithout af- `fecting itslnecessaryy `strength and ldurability. Anotheradvantageousl structural feature is thatthe lower end of the bit23 iscoincident with the lower end of the jaw `16`forming part of the lever17, and by this `means the `bolts 24k are materially relieved of strainduring the operation of the said lever and bit. Both bits 141 and 28 arepreo'r having the least lshifting action. when subjected to strain inremoving a spike. This positive retention of the bits `and theirreinforcement by the parts to which they are applied to relieve thefastcnings therefor of' strain, together `"with the reinforcing andstrengthening action of the brace 19 relatively to the jaw 1G`landparticularly lthe fulcrum. bolt 18 of the latter jaw, arefeatures whichconjointly contribute to the production of a strong and spike puller.

What is claimed is: "1. In a spike puller, a a lower curved edge forminga primal fulcrum edge an'l a rear extension providing` an additionalfulcruni means, 'the support] at its forward extremity having avertically an anglethereto, a applied 'to the outer against the shoulderextremity with a toe lower edge of the supalso having an end defixed`jaw removably side'of the support and `having a lower f ydepending belowthe port, a pivoted jaw 40 spending below lower `terminal coincidentwith the `lower end of the pivoted jaw to brace the bit.

"2," In spike puller, a flat support having lower fulcrum means and avertical shoulder at an angle to the front extremity there` of andprojectingoutwardly beyond the outer "side of the support, a ixedjawapplied tothe `5:5 outer side of the support against said shoulderandterminating at its upper end'ush Lezama into an elongated landleforming a rprying' fiat support having l x the lower edge ofthe supportand' continuing into an elongated han i of the `support and having alower depending end withya toe, a pivoted jaw on the supportcontinuinginto an elongated handle forming a prying ever, and areversible bt secured to the front edgeof the pivotedy law adjacent tothe fixed jaw yand provided with a toe at e'ach end to coperate with thetoe of the fixed jaw.

`3'. In a spike pu Ller, a iiat sup ort having a lower fulcrurli means,a fixe jaw applied to the outer side of the support and having a lowerdepending end witha toe,` a` pivoted jaw on the support continuing withthe upper edge it" secured to the pivoted jaw and provided with a toe ateach end to coperate with the toe of the fixed jaw, and a brace securedto the lower portion of the outer side of the su pport and extendingover and engaging the pivoted jaw, the pivot of kthe latter jaw extinding through one end of said brace to re nforce said pivot. f

i. rIn a spikepuller, a flat support having lower fulcrum means and anextension provided with a vertical bracing shoulder at any outward angleto the outer side of the support, a fixed jaw removably applied to theouter side of the support `against said shoulder and having a lowerdepending toe, and a pivoted jaw on the outer side ofthe supportcontinuing; into an elongated handle forming a prying y ever andprovided with a depending toe to :operate with the toe of' the fixedjaw. y i

5. In a spike puller, a flat supporthaving lower primal and additionalfulcrum edges and an extension provided with a'vertical` bracingshoulder onthe outer side of the support, a fixedv iaw applied to theouter side of the support against said shoulder y and having a lowe rdepending toe, a pivoted jaw on theouter side of the support con-`tinuing into antlongated handle forming i a prying lever and having atoe to coperate with the toe ofthe ixed'jaw, and a y `brace secured toalie outer side vof the support and extendin g over and `having one endengaging the piv( t of the pivoted jaw.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand'in presence of two`subscribing witnesses. f f i ci lever, a reversible l i Witnesses: y

i V Copies o! this patentmaybe obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

` Washington, D. C.-

nDwA an risiiiiin-eoisniv.` r

